'You have to believe' - Mark Warburton tells Nottingham Forest to have faith in their football ethos

Mark Warburton wants his Nottingham Forest players to believe that they can be a success playing the brand of football he demands, as a Fulham side with an identical mentality visit the City Ground tomorrow

Mark Warburton firmly believes his footballing ethos will be successful at Nottingham Forest – and has told his players they must retain the same faith.

The slick passing approach the Reds boss demands from his side requires absolute confidence and bravery, if it is to work.

And, ahead of the visit of a Fulham side with an almost identical ethos, Warburton has urged his players to have confidence in their own ability and quality, as they return to action at the City Ground.

Forest looked a nervous, tentative outfit in the first half at Villa Park – producing what Warburton described as being the worst 30 minutes of football of his tenure. But when they played with purpose and tempo in the second half, they were unfortunate not to claim a share of the spoils, within a narrow 2-1 defeat.

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And Warburton has urged his Forest players to remember their positive performances they have produced when they have played with purpose this season.

“You have to believe. We spoke to the players and we said that it is all about belief. It is about belief in your own ability, it is about belief in your colleagues and belief in the togetherness we have here,” said Warburton. “You have to believe in the way we go about the game.

“You are asking players to be brave; you are asking them to be strong and take the ball in tight areas. It does take a certain type of player to do that.

“But they have shown they can do it – they have shown they are more than good enough to do it.

“It is having that belief and confidence to do it time and again. We are getting there but it is also still a work in progress.”

Fulham boss Slaviša Jokanović has said that Fulham will keep faith that their own passing approach will bring them success this season – and says their commitment to playing that way will not waver, saying: “People say where is plan B, C and D but I don’t believe these are better than plan A and in this moment we are going to try and follow in this style.”

And Warburton says he will retain a similar mentality at the City Ground.

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“Yes, it is something I can empathise with. If you hark back a couple of seasons I got absolutely caned for saying something like ‘Plan B is to do Plan A better’,” said Warburton.

Fulham boss Slavisa Jokanovic

“I understand exactly what he is saying. It is about believing in the style of play. Whether you play with a diamond, with a 4-3-3, or whether you play 3-5-2 with wingbacks… whatever your formation, there is a style of play that does not change.

“There is a philosophy that the players will not change.

“I understand exactly where he is coming from and sometimes you do get miss-quoted or people misread what you are trying to say.

“But he is very keen to establish his style of play and his philosophy throughout the club and we are exactly the same here.”

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Warburton is expecting an intriguing encounter at the City Ground, between two sides who like to dominate possession.

But he believes the key will be turning that possession into quality opportunities in front of goal.

“It will be a good game of football, because they are a good team to watch,” said Warburton. “They are brave to get on the ball and possess good individual players, attacking flair and athleticism. They are a footballing team and a good one. But so are we. We look forward to giving a good account of ourselves.

Matt Mills at Villa Park (Image: Dan Westwell)

“We have dominated possession this season, which is one stat – and that is fine. But it is about chances for me – the number of chances you create and the quality of them. That is what matters.